It’s always a great idea to have a handful of different types of adhesive tapes in your toolbox, workshop, or office-supplies cabinet. From sealing, bonding, and bundling, to protecting or repairing, there’s an optimal tape for your application. Let’s explore the top seven tapes your business should have on hand in case you need a quick fix or a more permanent solution.
| Duct Tape | Electrical Tape | Antimicrobial Film Tape | |
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Strong, flexible, and weather-resistant. Available in a variety of strengths and colors. |
Smooth, non-conductive vinyl resists copper corrosion, moisture, acid, and abrasion. Offered in a variety of colors and grades for different voltages. |
Contains an agent that helps prevent the growth of bacteria, mold, or fungi on high-touch surfaces. |
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| Best suited for: | Bundling, sealing, holding, and seaming projects. | Use on materials that conduct electricity, such as wires and cables. |
Door handles, doorknobs, railings, touchscreens, cart handles, and other routinely touched surfaces. |
| Masking Tape | Foil Tape | |
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| Multipurpose tapes in a variety of adhesive levels. Easy to remove and gentle on a variety of surfaces. | Designed in adherence to performance and safety codes in HVAC applications. Waterproof and bonds to flexible materials. | |
| Best suited for: |
Paint projects, labeling, support while glue dries, and more. |
HVAC repairs or installations. Use on ducts, vents, and more. |
| Water-Activated Tape | Office Tape | |
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| Kraft paper tape that becomes sticky when activated by water. Use on kraft packaging boxes. |
Transparent, clear, or matte backing on adhesive strip. |
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| Best suited for: | Shipping departments. | Torn paper, crafts, general holding, sealing envelopes, mounting, and more. |
Duct Tape
Duct tape, also known as cloth tape, features strong adhesive and is often made with a water-resistant backing, making the tape suitable for indoor and outdoor applications. Duct tape is available in a variety of grades that indicate the strength of the adhesive and cloth backing. The more threads the cloth backing has, the stronger the tape is. If you just need a temporary fix, regular-strength duct tape should do the trick. If you need a more permanent hold, opt for higher-strength duct tape. Duct tape uses include patching holes, sealing gaps, general repairs, holding items in place, and much more.
Interesting fact: duct tape used to be referred to as duck tape. During WWII, U.S. military soldiers used it to keep water out of their ammunition cases. Water would bead up and roll off the tape just like it rolls off a ducks’ back!
Electrical Tape
Electrical tape, also known as insulating tape, is made to be used on materials that conduct electricity, such as electrical wires and cables. Most often made from non-conductive vinyl, electrical tape is flexible and designed to resist moisture, copper corrosion, abrasion, and acid. Some varieties can be UV-resistant, flame-retardant, and cold-resistant, depending on your application. Electrical tape is most commonly used to cover exposed cables, wires, and other materials. Always make sure to follow the minimum and maximum temperature ratings on the packaging.
Antimicrobial Film Tape
Antimicrobial film tape contains an antimicrobial agent that can limit the growth of bacteria, mold, and fungi. These tapes can be applied to high-touch zones and may limit the transmission of harmful microbes. Common places for antimicrobial films to be used are door handles, touchscreens, electronic equipment, checkout lanes, shopping carts, railings, elevators, and so much more. These tapes are often used in retail environments, hospitals, restaurants, schools, stadiums, public transportation, airplanes, and others.
Masking Tape
Masking tape is an all-purpose tape that’s available in a variety of adhesive strengths. Masking tapes are generally lightweight and are more easily removed than heavy-duty tapes such as duct tape. Masking tapes are available in delicate-surface formulations that can be used on surfaces such as wallpaper.
A popular type of masking tape is painter’s tape. The difference between regular masking tape and painter’s tape is that painter’s tape is formulated to not allow bleeding when used with water-based lucite paints. Masking tape is often made with a crepe backing and rubber adhesive that could allow the paint to bleed and leave a residue when removed. Painter’s tape is designed to protect wood trim, door frames, floorboards, and more from unwanted paint. When removed, it should reveal a clean line. Painter’s tape is also great for creating decorative designs on walls, floors, furniture, and more.
Foil Tape
Foil tape, also called HVAC tape, has a metal backing that reflects light, heat, and vapor, and is UV-resistant. With high strength and durability, foil tape is used on seams and joints of aluminum and fiberglass duct board as well as on metal sheeting in construction. Made with waterproof adhesive, foil tape adheres to irregular surfaces and comes in metallic colors to blend with ductwork.
Water-Activated Tape
If you regularly ship products to your customers, consider using water-activated tapes (WAT), also known as gummed tapes. Regular WAT consists of a kraft-paper backing and an adhesive that is activated by water. Reinforced WAT is also available and is strengthened by fiberglass filament. WAT is appealing for its strength, recyclability, and tamper-evident properties.
Office Tape
An essential in every home and office, office tape is great for fixing torn paper, sealing envelopes, mounting reminders or artwork, gift wrapping, crafts, and so much more. Office tape is available in a variety of finishes to suit your application, including transparent, clear, matte, gift-wrapping, double-stick, and others. A variety of formulations, including stronger adhesion and removable designs, ensure there’s an office tape for your project.
5 Types of Tape Dispensers
Now that we’ve explored the seven must-have tapes, let’s learn about some tape-dispensing solutions.
Which Tape Dispenser Should You Use?
| Manual Tape Dispenser | Heavy-Duty Tape Dispenser | Hand-Held Tape Dispenser | |
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| Made for water-activated tape. More advanced models allow you to set the needed length. | Dispenses a variety of heavy-duty tapes including masking, packing, and strapping tapes. | Allows the user to manually roll on tape and cut to the desired length with a serrated edge. | |
| Best suited for: | Shipping stations. | Shipping stations. | Low-volume shipping/home use. |
| Electric Tape Dispenser | Office Tape Dispenser | |
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| Includes carousel designs for self-adhesive tapes or designs for water-activated tape. These machines cut the tape for the user. | Weighted office tape dispenser with serrated edge for easy cutting. | |
| Best suited for: | High-volume shipping stations or high-volume specialty shipping/crafts. | Office and home settings. |
Manual Tape Dispenser
Manual tape dispensers are made for water-activated tapes, or gummed tapes, and help the packer to wet and cut the tape. The most basic models require the user to pull the tape over its brushes to wet it and then manually cut it. More advanced models allow the user to set the length with an adjustable numbered scale, pull a lever, and the tape is dispensed and cut. Manual tape dispensers are a great option for businesses with lower-volume shipping needs or in areas where electricity isn’t available.
Heavy-Duty Tape Dispenser
Heavy-duty tape dispensers are generally used in high-volume shipping environments. These dispensers allow the user to program the length of tape needed and the machine dispenses and cuts the tape. Heavy-duty tape dispensers are compatible with a variety of tapes including packing, masking, and strapping tapes.
Hand-Held Tape Dispenser
Hand-held tape dispensers remove the need for scissors and give the user greater control of tape placement. Most often used to assemble boxes for storage, moving, or shipping, a hand-held dispenser is a must for every home and business. Plus, the user can load a variety of types of tapes into the dispenser for greater versatility.
Electronic Tape Dispenser
Electronic tape dispensers can come in a variety of styles. One design, the carousel style, allows the user to quickly dispense many pieces of tape for a variety of purposes including specialty packaging, gift wrapping, crafts, sealing small parts bags, floral jobs, and more.
Electronic water-activated tape dispensers can enhance productivity in busy shipping departments. These programmable machines wet, dispense, and cut your desired length of gummed tape.
Office Tape Dispenser
Office tape dispensers make dispensing your tape easier. From the classic styles to more modern designs, many of them feature weighted bases for one-handed dispensing. Cutting your tape is a breeze with their serrated edges. Make sure the width of your tape is compatible with the dispenser before making a purchase.
Adhesive tapes are essential supplies to have on hand no matter what type of business you own. At Zoro, we offer all of the tapes and dispensers discussed in this article and so much more.
Product Compliance and Suitability
The product statements contained in this guide are intended for general informational purposes only. Such product statements do not constitute a product recommendation or representation as to the appropriateness, accuracy, completeness, correctness, or currentness of the information provided. Information provided in this guide does not replace the use by you of any manufacturer instructions, technical product manual, or other professional resource or adviser available to you. Always read, understand, and follow all manufacturer instructions.